Tools with extendable handles are known in the art. In particular, extendable wrench handles are known in the art, as illustrated by U.S. Pat. No. 6,408,721 (“the '721 patent”). For the same amount of exertion, a user can increase the amount of torque applied by the wrench to a nut or bolt by extending the handle of the wrench to increase the moment arm. Therefore, a user can loosen or tighten nuts or bolts more easily.
The tool disclosed by the '721 patent suffers from certain deficiencies. For example, it will not prevent relative rotation between the tube and shaft when sufficient relative rotational force between the tube and the shaft is applied. This can be a problem because a user may attempt to exert a purely translational force on the handle but instead some of this force may be transferred to a rotational force. This tool (and a similar tool disclosed by Published U.S. Patent Application 2004/0020331) also does not prevent the tube from becoming separated from the shaft when a large amount of torque is applied to the tube.